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Not sure why you were downvoted. I suppose some people just can't handle the truth, because you're absolutely correct. The police have the power to make your li

Not sure why you were downvoted. I suppose some people just can't handle the truth, because you're absolutely correct. The police have the power to make your life hell, especially if someone reports you for "suspicious activity" and there is an even remotely plausible reason (e.g. "he is taking photos because he's planning a terrorist attack!").

drzaiusapelord 10y ago
HN heavily leans white suburban kid culture. I think when you make claims like I do that goes against their experiences and they simply don't understand. They don't understand situations when the police aren't automatically on your side. That's how life has always been for them. I remember one of the first times I was pulled over. I was driving my dad's car, which was a nicer but not terribly expensive, luxury model. The cop literally had his gun out in a battle pose as his partner approached my window. I thought that was normal until someone told me otherwise. Apparently, the cop thought the car was stolen and was expecting a gunfight due to how I looked (young dark guy in a bmw driving the way most teenagers drive). I'm decently well off now and don't often deal with this stuff much or just don't notice it anymore, but growing up I was certainly treated a certain way my white friends were not. I don't blame them if they don't understand this automatically. They never had those experiences and its understandable. But it is annoying to be auto-downvoted like I'm making all of this up or have some big agenda. I rarely talk about this stuff to be honest, mostly because of reactions like this.
- pavel_lishin 10y ago
  You're right, most people don't understand just how lucky they are to be born that way. But those are exactly the people who should be standing up to this sort of bullshit, because they can do so with less risk.
  - stcredzero 10y ago
    Throughout history, some risks when doing activism as a privileged member of society: - Oppressing one group while championing another - Oppressing the group you are championing - Acting in anger and alienating potential allies - Acting in anger and discrediting potential allies
    - pavel_lishin 10y ago
      I mostly meant personal risk; I'm less likely to be severely harmed, physically or financially.
      - ebfe 10y ago
        That's patently not true. You're far more likely to be harmed than, say, women or Asians, though the latter are oppressed.
- Frondo 10y ago
  Thank you, thank you a thousand times, for sharing your experiences. I hope someone here reads it and realizes that other people experience a different (and usually less pleasant and more hostile) world.
tangue 10y ago
Exactly. Just remember the last tweets from Ian Murdock from Debian
mhurron 10y ago
If you do not stand up for your rights, you do not have them. So, how important is it to you? Unfortunately I do not live in or around NYC so all I can say is fuck the port authority.
pavel_lishin 10y ago
> Not sure why you were downvoted Because of this: > Its just easier to just accept the bullying and go away. Someone has to stand up to the bullies, or they'll keep going forever. Obviously I'm coming at this from a privileged position - I'm a white male with a relatively clean background. My job and family situation would permit me to be detained, even for 24 hours, without catastrophic results. If I were black, or a Sikh, or here on a work visa, or working a job that I'm likely to lose if I don't show up with no notice, then I would skew more heavily towards the "ignore the bully". But I'm not, so I wouldn't.
- angersock 10y ago
  So, here's the problem with "standing up to the bullies", explorable with one question: How did you feel about the shootings in Dallas and Baton Rouge of officers?
  - saynsedit 10y ago
    I hope you're not implying that the logical conclusion of "standing up to the bullies" is police murder. Ever heard of non-violent civil disobedience? It was popularized by a little known guy named Martin Luther King Jr. He got it from another guy who went by the name of Mahatma Gandhi.
    - tremon 10y ago
      However tasteless and ineffectual in the long run, I think it is a logical response to the existing problem. Frankly I'm surprised it took this long, given that there is more than 20 years of documented case history of government officials being unaccountable for homicide.
      - TallGuyShort 10y ago
        No it's not. People shooting random police are bullies as much as police shooting random people. Stand up to both. Police aren't the only people who get away with murder.

drzaiusapelord 10y ago

HN heavily leans white suburban kid culture. I think when you make claims like I do that goes against their experiences and they simply don't understand. They don't understand situations when the police aren't automatically on your side. That's how life has always been for them. I remember one of the first times I was pulled over. I was driving my dad's car, which was a nicer but not terribly expensive, luxury model. The cop literally had his gun out in a battle pose as his partner approached my window. I thought that was normal until someone told me otherwise. Apparently, the cop thought the car was stolen and was expecting a gunfight due to how I looked (young dark guy in a bmw driving the way most teenagers drive). I'm decently well off now and don't often deal with this stuff much or just don't notice it anymore, but growing up I was certainly treated a certain way my white friends were not. I don't blame them if they don't understand this automatically. They never had those experiences and its understandable. But it is annoying to be auto-downvoted like I'm making all of this up or have some big agenda. I rarely talk about this stuff to be honest, mostly because of reactions like this.

pavel_lishin 10y ago
You're right, most people don't understand just how lucky they are to be born that way. But those are exactly the people who should be standing up to this sort of bullshit, because they can do so with less risk.
- stcredzero 10y ago
  Throughout history, some risks when doing activism as a privileged member of society: - Oppressing one group while championing another - Oppressing the group you are championing - Acting in anger and alienating potential allies - Acting in anger and discrediting potential allies
  - pavel_lishin 10y ago
    I mostly meant personal risk; I'm less likely to be severely harmed, physically or financially.
    - ebfe 10y ago
      That's patently not true. You're far more likely to be harmed than, say, women or Asians, though the latter are oppressed.
Frondo 10y ago
Thank you, thank you a thousand times, for sharing your experiences. I hope someone here reads it and realizes that other people experience a different (and usually less pleasant and more hostile) world.

tangue 10y ago

Exactly. Just remember the last tweets from Ian Murdock from Debian

mhurron 10y ago

If you do not stand up for your rights, you do not have them. So, how important is it to you? Unfortunately I do not live in or around NYC so all I can say is fuck the port authority.

pavel_lishin 10y ago

> Not sure why you were downvoted Because of this: > Its just easier to just accept the bullying and go away. Someone has to stand up to the bullies, or they'll keep going forever. Obviously I'm coming at this from a privileged position - I'm a white male with a relatively clean background. My job and family situation would permit me to be detained, even for 24 hours, without catastrophic results. If I were black, or a Sikh, or here on a work visa, or working a job that I'm likely to lose if I don't show up with no notice, then I would skew more heavily towards the "ignore the bully". But I'm not, so I wouldn't.

angersock 10y ago
So, here's the problem with "standing up to the bullies", explorable with one question: How did you feel about the shootings in Dallas and Baton Rouge of officers?
- saynsedit 10y ago
  I hope you're not implying that the logical conclusion of "standing up to the bullies" is police murder. Ever heard of non-violent civil disobedience? It was popularized by a little known guy named Martin Luther King Jr. He got it from another guy who went by the name of Mahatma Gandhi.
  - tremon 10y ago
    However tasteless and ineffectual in the long run, I think it is a logical response to the existing problem. Frankly I'm surprised it took this long, given that there is more than 20 years of documented case history of government officials being unaccountable for homicide.
    - TallGuyShort 10y ago
      No it's not. People shooting random police are bullies as much as police shooting random people. Stand up to both. Police aren't the only people who get away with murder.